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Dark Worship
The Dark Worship (Q. "Moriaistale" S. "Dungortist" Me."Boshfai") was the veneration of the Dark lord as a deity or god-like being. The Beginnings The Roots of the Dark Worship could be traced back to Utumno where Melkor, the Dark Lord, demanded god-like adoration (Me."Boshfai") from his servants. So the first dark worship grew among the lesser minions of Utumno and later Angband, the Orc-servants whose first Dark Priest was the Demon-Orc Storlaga. Later, with the awakening of Men, Melkor disguised himself as a mighty man and became the teacher and seductor of the early men of Hildorien. He ordered them to build him a temple and to bring human-sacrifices. Most dark cults of Middle-Earth among the Wild Men were based on legends about this first Temple. The Sauronites After Morgoth's banishment, Sauron continued the dark worship. At first his reverence to the great fallen Vala was honest and he acted as Melkor's viceregent and High-Priest, but later he doubted that Morgoth would ever return and fancied himself his rightful heir. He eventually started to claim he himself was Morgoth returned or reincarnated and demanded the godlike worship as King of the World for himself as the true Dark Lord. In the end both dark Cults, Morgoth's and Sauron's, contested the reverence of Illuvatar as monotheistic religions, tolerating no gods, not even lesser ones, beside the Dark Lord. As The Dark Worship was renewed and confirmed throughout the Third Age, the Sauronites began to prosecute the adherents of both, the Eruist and Valarin Cults of the Eldar and Dúnedain as well as the superficial Cults of the Wild Men. In the end even the Followers of the old Melkoric Cults, such as the Cult of the Long Night, were considered intolerable rivals by the devout Sauronites. The Dark Worship in Endor The Dark Worship took different shapes at different times and places.At the height of his Power Sauron claimed the Title King of The World and King of Men from his predecessor Morgoth, later after his fall the Dark Worship often disguised itself, Sauron's return was prophesied as the coming of The Adanil, the "Friend of Men", a messianic figure often in combination with anti-Dúnedain Propaganda. The many Faces of the Dark Worship Melkoric Cults *the Court of Ardor in the Utter South **the Cult of the dark Overlord (Seven lands) *Cult of Herumor (fourth Age Gondor) *The Cult of Vâtra (Far-Harad) *the Mulkheril (Númenóreans) **the Cult of Blackheart (Eriador) **the Mahurk (Near-Harad) **Necromancers (Númenóreans) **the Zâur an-Anî (Near-Harad) ***Bad Dúathin (Umbar) *the First Temple (Hildorien) **the cult of Ardûtor (Mornârim) **the cult of Kaishnalai (Sinking Plain) **the Cult of Kragûl (Ioriags) ***the temple of Kondrí Odhí (Khand) ***the cult of Kor-Sharhaigun (Asdriags) **the Cult of the Long Night (Rhûn and Rhovanion) **The cult of Ráskara (Adena) *the Priests Arnak *Servants of the True Fire (Far-Harad) **Keepers of the true flame (Sîrayn) *Twelve of Mithrisars (Palisor) Sauronite Cults *the Cult of the Lidless Eye (Sauron's religion after he had openly proclaimed himself the true Dark Lord) **Akshum-oymalv (second Age Rhûn-easterlings) ***the cult of Kerkassk (Rhûn) **Those with the Black Hand, the Prophets of the Adanil in the Southern Regions **Cult of Dasata (Haradrim) **cult of the Shadow or Religion of the Lawmasters (Farthest East) ***the Belaen-an-Voryl (Wômawas Drûs) ***the Bwaig-ir-Omdren in Lôkhas Drûs ***the Cult of Sûr (Wômawas Drûs) **the Fist of Dark Sorcery (Rhûn) ***Nightblades or Tattoo of the Eye (Rhûn) **the Hron Tumrakhi (Khand) ***Claws of Dusk (Khand) **the Cult of Khäz-gramaze (Near-Harad) **the Order of Tûthmeid (Umbar) ***Dain-i-Durardh (Ithilien) ***thw Spider Cult (Minas Ithil) **The Tayb or Followers of The Silent One (Far Harad) **the Withered Tree (Gondor) *the Cult of Shoglic (Daen) *the Guldur Sorcerers (Rhovanion) **the Sarshen Meltek (Balchoth) ***the Cult of Maladûm (Balchoth) *the Witches of Angmar **the Mur-Grishi (Angmar) Category:Religion Category:Cult